US government system flaw?

The budget impasse in California appears to be another example of a flaw in the US system of government. The inability of California legislators to agree on a new budget (66% approval required) will soon see over 20,000 state employees sacked and more to follow. Ultimately, if no agreement can be reached, the state government would shut down entirely. A few years ago, this happened at the Federal level.

Insanity in a can.

By comparison, the government in a country or jurisdiction running a parliamentary system, like Canada or New Zealand, faced with a similar deadlock, would at least have the option of calling an election and letting the voters sort it out. That seems a much better "circuit-breaker" than playing political Russian Roulette with the jobs of state employees and the government services of everyone who lives there.

Ignorance, unfounded faith and perversity equal trouble

Following on from my post yesterday, I've continued to think on this topic. So much to think about!

The Guardian in the UK has compiled a list ("Twenty-five people at the heart of the meltdown ...") of people to....well.....blame for the crash. All the big names are there and the role of each is summarised in more or less detail depending on their part in the big picture.

In each case belief appears have have played a significant role in the way each behaved. The article explains that even 'The Maestro' himself, former US Federal Reserve Chair, Alan Greenspan, now admits he acted on beliefs he now considers to have been incorrect.Many of the people listed in the article (like George W Bush) would have had no real idea themselves as to what economic or financial policy regime would have been best. They were almost certainly acting on the advice of others, many of whom are on the list. But acting beyond one's competence can't be an excuse when you are ultimately reponsible for the outcomes. If anything, this highlights there is too little diversity of opinion close to the where the big decisions are made, and the people who make the final decision on these matters don't actually KNOW.....they have merely been persuaded.The difference between the two is huge.

But how did they all get it so wrong for so long? US investor, Warren Buffet was warning of possible disaster 6 years ago, as was Nobel Prize winning economist, Paul Krugman in 2003's "The Great Unravelling".

Leon Gettler, writing in Melbourne's "The Age" at the end of October, cited "The Perverse Organisation and Its Deadly Sins" by RMIT academic Susan Long as providing some insight into why things were able to go so wrong: perversity.

Long argues that:

"... organisations and corporations can create perverse systems, of which there are several forms. "

"First, there is the state of primary narcissism, where certain interests are pursued at the expense of the general good, and others are turned into objects to serve certain ends."

"Second, there is a system where the awful truth is acknowledged and, at the same time, denied, echoing Freud's view that there is a part of the personality that sees things realistically and another that is locked into a delusion."

"Third, accomplices need to be seduced and set in place. These relationships need to be instrumental, turned into transactions. And perversion, she says, begets perversion. Which means collusion and turning a blind eye permeate the system."

On the RMIT page about her book, Long also says:

“To look at the formation of perverse practice, structure and culture within organisations is also to look at that development in society more broadly.”

So there it is. Perversity on this huge, globe-spanning scale isn't isolated or exceptional. It's most likely to be a reflection of the wider society. In that context, the ignorance of each of us about so much that we SHOULD know become very relevant. From climate change, to peak oil, to the way our own municipalities and countries are run, large parts of the population don't know (and don't want to). It's all part of the wider context in which the financial systems of the world become a slow motion train wreck right before the eyes of everyone.....and most weren't even paying attention and even most of the experts claim to have not seen it coming.

...and they really didn't. That IS perverse.

Pondering a new Auckland

In the Herald, Bernard Orsman reports on the progress of the Royal Commission on Auckland Governance. As one might expect, the various communities of interest advance their own interests. After North Shore City and Manukau had made their presentations, Justice Salmon commented:

"I would like to see the big councils expressing a view that put Auckland first. What we get from each of them is expressing a view putting their own territories first."

In my view, this strikes to the very heart of the issue for Auckland and one could extend it to the whole of the country without too much effort.

In my own submission, I argued for a single Council for the whole Auckland region provided the Council was elected by a ward-based STV voting system. If it were to be elected by First Past the Post (FPP), I would oppose amalgamation altogether in favour of retaining the existing fragmented structure. Any new Auckland must be robustly democratic and strongly representative. STV, properly configured, allows all significant minorities to win representation. First Past the Post gives representation to the one or two largest minorities only, and excludes all others. FPP is poor democracy and would ultimately undermine the legitimacy of the new Auckland Council as most voters would not have voted for the people who claimed to represent them.

The new unified Council would need to have at least 35 Councilors. Preferably 50. It the number was too small, then Councilors would be inaccessible to most people. The more Councilors you have, the fewer Community Boards would be required. Run that equation in both directions.

There would be no need for a regional body as the unified Council would serve both roles with Community Boards being advocates for various communities.

I can see a role for specific Maori representation, perhaps in a parallel set of region-wide "Maori wards" or maybe by guaranteeing several seats to the highest polling Maori candidates on the common roll. It depends on whether you want just Maori to choose these Councilors or all voters to haver a say. Arguments will run in both directions.

I'm vague / flexible on the details because my primary interest is in a single Council that has the power and reach to do what needs to be done with the infrastructure for the entire region without wasting years - even decades - tangled in parochial interests.

For example, the Auckland Regional Transport Authority (ARTA) is knobbled in almost every direction. They carry the responsibility for public transport but appear to lack most of the authority that would allow them to actually do it properly.

Not least among the constraints is the dreadfully wasteful "funder / provider" split between ARTA and a dozen or more private operators. Ticketing is a mess and taking years to sort out. Pricing is too high. Bus routes often don't integrate with train timetables. In many cases, they don't even go to the stations. Some idiot built Britomart with only one rail line in or out and no bus hub. You have to leave Britomart and wander around the CBD looking for your bus and - separately - the vendor who sells concession tickets for that particular operator. Britomart doesn't.
Transfers are poorly integrated, often requiring people, assuming they are able enough, to make long walks between carriers, up hill or down, rain or shine.

It won't get any better until the political environment changes and that won't happen until a new, empowered Council can build transit hubs, re-align roads and MAKE it happen.

www.winterpower.co.nz

Transpower has set up a web site to inform us all about the state of the power supply during the Winter. It's "winterpower.co.nz"

Winter Power Watch is about providing all New Zealanders with accurate, up to date information about the outlook for electricity supplies during winter 2008.

We're heading into winter this year off the back of a significant summer drought in the North Island and low rainfall in the South Island. At the same time, the electricity industry has been dealing with numerous technical issues such as the forced retirement of New Plymouth power station (because of asbestos contamination) and limited transfer of energy across the HVDC link between the islands.

...etc..

Well worth a look. I found on homepaddock's blog. It had been cited by Bernard Hickey as an example of government waste.

I don't agree. I found it very useful. My requirements wouldn't be the same as Mr. Hickey's, I guess. Probably a case of one person's waste being another person's excellent value.